Unsung Sonnet
by LuisLass
Summary: To draw a line between what is important to one and what is important to his family, is always a hard task to do. When that family consist of a criminal organization, that becomes ten times as hard. Watch the turns of events of Cabba as a mafia member and trained assassin; for even one night of his life is enough of an adventure get entranced by. (AU Story).


**Disclaimer: I do not own Dragon Ball (Z/Super/GT) or its characters.**

**Author Notes: **_Welcome to this collection of random thoughts that I put together. I heard once that the best way to get over a writer's block is to write something completely different from what you're used to do, so here we are!_

_I thought about just leaving this at some corner of my pc and forget about it, but after considering that my last One shot story was not good enough as a 'gift', I decided to publish this one as a real holidays' gift. I hope you all enjoy this, and that it is as fun and cool to ready as it was to write. _

* * *

Unsettling is a word to describe this day, from the moment Cabba got back to the house, every possible little thing happened to thwart his routine. First, his friend forced him to lay his head down and close his eyes; he cannot deny that it helped a lot to take some time to rest, a little shut-eye in the middle of his chaotic life, but said luxury cost him the efficiency of time on his tight schedule.

From the moment the young man woke up, all the tension that was lifted from his body came crushing on his nerves. If Sloppiness is considered a failure in his 'line of work', then in the eyes of his boss, failure is a cardinal sin. So for the three hours he has spent sleeping, he now has to work five more to compensate; luckily for him, the evening has just started and that is prime time for him.

Not so lucky for Cabba is the fact that something has occurred, and something that demanded his attention. As per usual, whenever he is dragged away from his tasks at hand… that means family business.

"How are you feeling? Did that headache stopped?" Said a young-looking man, his words puffing out with a coat of smoke from his cigarette.

Cabba sighed, his eyes ever focused on the rushing lights passing by from the other side of the window. "It faded a bit." He replied, shuffling himself on the front seat of the car. "I got one job left to do. Are you sure that you need me here?" From the unappreciated side-glance he got from his longtime friend, he felt that his headache might come back with throbbing violence this time.

"Father's orders." Said his friend, eyes ever so focused on the night-busy street. "Apparently a bold group of punks went to one of the pawnshops on our turf; they buzzed inside and demanded to be on the payroll for protection. Napa arrived on the usual clock to get our due and the soon to be dead clowns shot him."

"What!?" Cabba's mouth almost fell to his chest from hearing that. Feels more unbelievable that someone decided to stir trouble inside their turf than the fact that the old baldy got shot; Nappa always had a knack for getting into unnecessary fights, but someone going against the family that was unheard of. "Any word of who did it?"

His friend took a long glance at him, a strange look showing on his face. "Nappa is alive by the way. Busted leg, but alive." He said with a quirked brow.

"Of course he is alive." Cabba growled his response back. "Father would've called us back home instead of throwing us on that shop if there was a corpse left on the scene."

"Big-hearted as always."

"Asparus… Just spill the beans or shut up."

Letting out another bubble of almost transparent smoke, Asparus smirked at his friend and brought his eyes back to the road. "Dunno who did it. But I know what will happen to them." His voice came out as blank, without a shred of any emotion on them. It has been so long since he stopped caring for a stranger's life. His right hand freed itself from the steering wheel, sliding down to the dark piece of metal at the side of his seat.

Giving out a sonorous click of his tongue, Cabba pulled his head to the side, pushing his forehead against the foggy glass. "Another job to the list." He said disinterestedly.

"Another job to the list." Asparus echoed his friend's words, the same blank expression still adorning his face.

Getting the muffled groan coming out from his friend, Asparus took as a hint to stay quiet and just focus on his task, driving them both to their destination. Cabba, still annoyed by the forced change in his itinerary, just pushed his back against his seat and tried to get some reprise for the moment, this may be another sleepless night from him.

* * *

Stepping out of the black sedan, the night's district air filled the insides of Cabba's nostrils. The smell of cigarettes and cheap perfume is the predominant stink that always graces these streets by the start of night; an inviting scent for those who try to escape their lives in this little corner of the city, and the 'smell of home' for those who work on the nightlife.

"Let's go." Asparus walked behind his quiet friend, giving him a small push at the side of his arm.

Letting his friend push the sliding doors open and step inside first, Cabba eyed their surroundings as people passed by them so immersed in their gossips that they failed to notice the shouts and screams venting from within the small shop.

Stepping inside with 'business look' stamped on his face, the young man dressed in his black suit and dark-leather shoes, spared the old looking shop owner a small glance right before he went further in, entering the tiny back room at the pawnshop's back.

"Gh… Grah… Fuck!" The pained grunts of the bald man filled the small room; Nappa's usual frown is now ten times worse, and this is time accompanied by a plethora of curses and different scowls. "Those sons of whores will pay for this." His heavy hand smacked the top of an empty cardboard box, his naked large arm twitching with the fervor of his anger.

"Recognize any of them?" Asparus crouched next to his 'brother', his face impassive and blank as always.

"Ha? What?" Nappa glared at the younger man, his face changing from uber-rage to a slightly confused frown. "Never saw those punks before." He snarled. "If those were recurring offenders, they would be dead, not shooting my fucking leg."

Cabba walked next to his young friend, his eyes traveling down to the moist stains of blood running down from Nappa's left thighs, the blood marks painting his pants red from that wound all the way to his ankle. "Describe them." He said stoically.

"Fucking hell, can't you two at least give me a pain killer?!" He winced back in pain as he tried to move his injured leg. "The old fart just stitched my leg, soaking the thing with vodka. Bastard didn't even give me some before putting a needle on my skin."

"He saved you the trouble of an amputation or worse, going to the hospital. Stop whining." Asparus growled at the burly man, his commentary earning him a sharp glare from the bald guy. "Here, take this and stop complaining." He pulled out one cigarette from the box on his suit's pocket and handed it over to the wounded man. Lighting up the white-stick comfort, he pulled his lighter back and stood back up.

Nappa inhaled deeply, the warm sensation flaring up inside his lungs, breaking his pained expression into one of slight delight. "Ah… That's the stuff." He nodded a 'thanks' to the youngster, putting his attention solely on his smoke instead of the killing pain in his leg.

"Care to describe the perpetrators now?" Cabba raised his voice, a tingle of impatience leaking from his tone. As Nappa just eyed him without much interest, the young man tightened his right hand into a fist, almost smacking the bald man on his stupid looking face. "We're not here on a stroll, Nappa. The Boss sent us both here to get this done. If you don't want to help, then let me inform the man himself."

Nappa's face went pale and his body went stiff frozen. "Father knows about this?" He let that out in shock. "Damn it Raditz, I told you to keep this quiet…"

Asparus brought a hand to the back of his head and messed with his hair. He took a breath to get his nerves in check and kneeled closer to Nappa again. "Look, man. I get it; those punks wounded your pride more than they wounded you. However, this shit they pulled here? That is family matters now… You know the deal, right?"

Nappa stood there, staring at the younger man for just a moment and then he nodded quietly. "Family matters, we all deal with it." He inhaled and puffed a small wave of heated air. "I've been on this life before you got out of your diapers kid. I know the drill." He grinned quietly, giving both boys an understanding glance. "There were four of them. Three were smart enough to hide their faces before coming here, the one acting as the leader gave little to no shit about not showing her face."

"The leader was a girl?" Cabba asked. "Describe her."

"Skinny, pale skin and she had this long spiky hair, all wild and going down to the length of her hips. She had a nasty glare but her face was pretty all right." Nappa pulled in another wave of that addicting pleasure inside his lung and continued. "She was dressing like any stupid kid of her age, all punk and rebellious, with shredded pants and a purple sweatshirt with the picture of a bleeding flower right in the middle. All of them were dressing like that."

"Save from her hair, you just described the picture of any bland young woman." Asparus ruffled his hair again, taking what was left of his cigarette and tossing it on the ground. "Even some whores who work on this avenue look like that."

"What you want from me, dumbass?" Nappa growled back. "Unless I miraculously get the ability to draw her face in a piece of paper. That is all I can give you."

Dealing with the old guard was never one of Cabba's favorite things to do, in fact, he hated doing it almost as much as he hates getting pulled into things like this. And Nappa is one of the worsts to deal with, the bald old man is prideful and a 'bona fide' scumbag. He hates sharing credit and hates getting help from the youngsters, which makes everyone who has entered the family after he did dread every time they had to work with the guy.

"This is useless… Let's go, Asparus. We will have more luck with the shop owner than with him." Before turning and walking away, Cabba glanced down at Nappa and grinned wickedly. "Have a good vacation, baldy."

His off-handed comment made Nappa turn red in anger and frustration, the older man pulled himself up to make his height more threatening and was ready to curse at the youngster, but the electric pain exploding from his leg tossed him right back to the floor. "Fucking brat." He said with a hush of his breath. Waving one hand in the air, he shooed Asparus away, making clear that talking time was over.

Shaking his head at the exchange of the two men, Asparus followed his friend out of the room. He saw Cabba talking with the old man, a sparkle of light shining at the giant bald spot on the top of his head with a few bushes of white-hair sitting on the sides.

"I-I heard a name…" The pawnshop owner began to explain, the tip of his fingers still red with blood and his hands trembling ever so slightly. "Those kids, they called each other by animal names. Their leader, the girl, they called her eagle."

"Codenames, huh?" Asparus chipped in, his voice ever so slight startling the old man. "How it went down, old man? They just came in demanding money?"

The man nodded but then shook his head. "This eagle girl, she called them the new 'top dogs' and that if I didn't want any trouble, I should pay them up or else…" His voice getting shakier the more he talked. "When I explain that this is your family's territory, they just laughed away." Seeing both Cabba and Asparus grit their teeth and frown deeply was enough to wobble the man's legs, he was ready to fall to the floor, but the strong grip of Cabba's hand held him in place.

"A-after… After shooting Mr. Nappa, they took all my money. I-I…" The man averted his gaze away, afraid of saying what he needed to say. "I swear, they took it all… I don't have anything left, I can't…"

"And you won't need it." Asparus said calmly. "Father is a reasonable man. For all that matters, our usual exchange went perfectly on your part; you don't need to pay anything else." He tapped the afraid geezer on his left shoulder and began to walk away, the sound of his heavy steps echoing inside the small shop. "This won't happen again, old man. We will find the punks and anything past our share will be returned to you."

Feeling the rush of relief washing over his inside, the feeble man tilted to the side, looking for extra support against his counter. He eyed as Asparus left and nodded in gratitude. "Thank you…" He said, now looking at Cabba.

Making sure the man would not fall on his knees, Cabba just grunted stoically and walked after his friend. Finding an angry-looking Asparus leaning against the side of his car.

"What?" Cabba asked. He knows his friend very well, and whenever Asparus is so quiet with his gaze lost to nothingness, it means that his head is going a thousand miles per second.

"These punks… I think I know something about them." Asparus replied drily. One of his hands went to his suit's pocket, pulling out another cigarette. After inhaling deeply at it, the pulled the thing away from his lips and exhaled the smoke out. "Remember that little incident I told you from days ago? Same shit, young-looking stupid wannabees barging into someone's territory and making a mess out of everything."

"Didn't you crossed that target?" Cabba asked with a raised brow.

"Two of them." Asparus replied with a lazy motion of his free hand. "Apparently that was not enough."

"Still… that is like looking for air in the middle of the sky. Our lead here is almost nothing."

"For the moment, yes." Sucking in deeply again, Asparus pushed himself forward and turned on his heels to get to his side of the car. "One of the rookies at the PD is working on those cases. I will try to see if she has something about these other ones."

Pulling the door open and falling on his seat, Cabba waited for his friend to get in and start the engine. "Still stuck in there?" He asked with a worried look.

"Father's orders." Asparus replied with a shrug. "He was the Major responsible for my department; he wants someone from the family inside to keep some tabs onto them." Pushing the gas down, he accelerated the car to the avenue, the image of the pawnshop getting smaller and smaller at the rearview mirror.

Cabba eyed his friend, first with a little awe in his gaze, then he laughed quietly, making Asparus glance at him with a quirked brow of his own. "You nagged at me all day to get some sleep, but when do you sleep?"

"During the day, like any normal crook." A wicked grin parted Asparus' lips apart, a small side of him rejoicing in the irony of his state of affairs. "The captain wants me on the street to deal with felons. I deal with them at night, while I'm not assigned to a target. Then I sleep for the whole day at home." He saw his friend laugh even more, so he gave him and laughed too. "I don't love doing this, but is what I have to do."

"Well, I am glad that you're the Cop/Mafioso. Just being a regular member is stressing enough for me." Putting his back comfortably against his seat, Cabba brought his eyes back to the outside, his gaze never locking on anything.

"Speaking of being a cop, I will have to leave you at the HQ. I am on watch duty on the pier's warehouses. I had to give a lame excuse to my new 'forced partner' when Father gave me the call."

"The pier?!" Cabba eyed him somewhat startled. "Isn't that?"

"Yep." Asparus replied with a wide grin. "Just doing my duty as an officer of the law."

"Let me guess, the boss is the one behind this?" Cabba asked.

"On the record, we got an anonymous tip from an upstanding citizen. In reality, this is payback for one of Kakarot's boys' fuck ups." Asparus brought on hand to his hair, rubbing the mess of hair back into a professional state. "If you ask me, this is still mild. You know what they did."

Cabba nodded, feeling the same way his friend is. The rival family crossed them in a big way last month. Messing with the neighbor's territory is bad enough, but stealing their 'business associates' is an even worse crime. It was only by the tight grip of their 'Father's' hands, that they didn't jump into an open war against the other side; but being patient doesn't mean that he is complacent. Asparus is more than eager to be the one getting back at them.

"Here we are, handsome." He said playfully as he stopped the car in front of a giant mansion. Just the gate and walls alone are five times bigger than any tall person could be, and that is just the outside area of this place. "Take this time to get some more rest; I will give you a call if I find anything."

"Can't do. I still got a loose target, remember?" Cabba replied with a slight frown.

"Do the job, then come back and sleep."

Not giving his bothersome friend the grace of any response, Cabba got out and closed the door behind him. That didn't stop Asparus from opening the window and leaning over the empty seat, just to look at him.

"I almost forgot… the boss wants to see you." He said coldly, his expression quickly returning to its blank, professional way. "See you later, Cabba."

Waving a silent goodbye to the other boy, Cabba watched as the black car start up again and took off to the empty avenue ahead of it. The young man took his eyes to the giant gate in front of him and let an inner debate flow for a moment. 'Is this about the job?' He asked himself with a grim feeling.

Maybe his 'father' is growing annoyed about the tardiness of his actions. He was given an extension on the limit date, but he knows that this job is taking too long and that is a bad thing. Steeling his nerves to endure whatever was going to be thrown at him Cabba stepped inside the large courtyard; no excuses ready, but hopeful that the Boss would be reasonable.

* * *

Resting his eyes in the respite of this silence, Cabba is waiting by himself on the 'meeting room'; a large square room with two rows of ornate wooden chairs placed in pairs in front of each other with a blank space in between each row, with just a beautiful red carpet resting on the cold floor on that empty spot. At the head end of this pathway sits a giant padded chair with two small tables resting nearby, one at each side and one massive one in front of it.

Every single wooden chair is designated to a specific person, no names attached to them but everyone knows their place, as each seat has marked on them something heavier than names or marks; the weight of the person within the family.

Cabba's chair is right in the middle, on the first row closest to the entry door. He is sitting there, both hands resting on his knees, eyes closed and chest going back and forward in a steady pace. His only sign of consciousness came went the door was pushed open and his eyes shot wide-awake.

He watched as the head of their family walked past him, not a single glance spared as he walked. Dressing in the most expensive and elegant black suit a person could ever have; stepped in the man of stone-cold gaze and unreadable expressions, the person known as Father or The Boss, the man who saved Cabba from a life of misery and possibly the fate of selling his body on the streets to even have food.

From a very early age, Cabba learned the worse side of humanity. He tasted the freezing solitude that this jungle of concrete throws at anyone who is deemed not worthy. Alone and famished, the young boy stole from any shop he could and deceived any person dumb enough to trust him, that was his way of getting by until the next day come to try his metal yet again. That continued until a man found him and gave him a choice; 'Waste your worthless life on the streets like a dejected dog or pledge your life to me and I will make you worth something.'

What real choice he had at that time? None.

Therefore, he extended his arm to that man and let himself be dragged into the darkness of this 'family'. Which for him turned to be a lot more enjoyable than the darkness of the open streets. Don Vegeta Sadala, now his 'father', is the person he owes everything and Cabba will go at any length to prove himself to this man, to prove that he is worth something now.

Pulling his mind back from that sea of sinking memories, Cabba waited until the man took his seat and acknowledge his presence with a stoic gaze, just then he raised his voice. "You called me, Father?"

"That, I did." A deep and raspy voice sounded off as a response, the man's sharp-black eyes staring right at Cabba with an unsettling coldness to them, but just a drop of warmth on to them. Vegeta dragged both arms in front of him, resting them in a crossed shape against his broad chest. "About your current job…"

Cabba promptly stood up and bowed in the line of sight of Vegeta. "Father, I had some problems getting to the target. But it will be done, I promise it."

"I know." Vegeta's stoic voice sounded off, the calmness of his tone forcing Cabba to look up and see his face. "You've yet to fail me. I don't expect you to start now." He shuffled two fingers in front of him, signaling Cabba to get back on his seat and so the boy did. "Report on this 'difficulty' you are having."

Cabba nodded hastily, his gaze going downwards as he was about to address his boss again. "The target has been hiding inside a homeless shelter. Since he is a recurrent member of the crooks on the streets, he knows that he crossed us and he knows we can't reach him in there… Unless we do something drastic."

Vegeta let sung a pensive hum, his eyes never leaving Cabba's form but his mind already focused on other considerations. "We cannot afford to leave that many witnesses, but we can't just wipe and entire building worth of people."

"That's why-" Cabba began.

"That's why…" Vegeta quickly interjected his voice in, louder and stronger than the young man's one, making Cabba shut up promptly. "We have dealt with the problem in a more subtle way."

A confused frown appeared on Cabba's face, he slowly raised his head showing that look to Vegeta, to which The Boss just smiled. "I don't understand, sir."

"Raditz, come in." Vegeta called out and the door instantly opened up. A tall man with a wild long hair walked inside his face a constant picture of grumpiness but softening into a respectful state to look at his boss.

Raditz walked just until he was a little behind on the centerline between both rows, he bowed and waited.

"Explain to Cabba what you said to me earlier." Vegeta commanded.

Raditz complied; he turned his gaze to Cabba and began to speak. "The shelter is now empty; we forced a sudden shut down for the weekend." He gesticulates in a way that passed that his actions where less messy and brutal than the norm. "Of course, the crook was still wary of his very shadow. So, I bumped into him on the street and pretended to not know his face. He thought I was just threatening to punch his nose off because that is what I would have done to any stranger."

"He believes that we have forgotten." Vegeta jumped in, his voice a bit darker than before. "Right now, he is enjoying his worthless routine of drinking until his face fells off." The big boss inched forward, his eyes twisting into an evil glare as he looked at Cabba. "Your 'difficulty' has been dealt with."

Cabba instantly took the hint; he jumped on his feet and bowed deeply once again. "It will be done, Father. Until the night ends, he will be dead." The young man turned on his heels, as he walked next to Raditz he felt a shift on the man's breathing as if he was about to speak, so Cabba stopped and looked at him.

"My bad for getting involved with your hit." The man said with a small remorseful glint on his eyes. He knows that every member of this family is prideful in some ways, even the young Cabba is, and getting 'help' is one of the taboos inside their circle.

"Nothing you could've done to stop it." Cabba said with a small nod. "When it turns into family matters…"

"Everyone is involved." Raditz continued the sentence, giving the boy a short grin. Right then he tapped Cabba on the shoulder and let the boy go on his way.

Marching forward out of the room, Cabba left his senior and his 'Father' behind. As the door closed behind him, both hands tightened into trembling fists, his eyes glowing with a murderous glint. The thoughts racing so wildly inside his mind that he failed to notice the small hushed words escaping his lips in between breaths. "That sneaking fucker is so dead."

* * *

With a freezing cold look in his eyes, Asparus stopped right beside a grey 'cleaning van' parked at a mostly abandoned lot right in view of the backside of the pier's warehouse. Every time he has to look at this stupid car, it reminds him of how oblivious and naïve his new partner his; even now the academy-fresh investigator's words are echoing inside his mind in a turmoil of stupidness.

'This is the perfect blending vehicle; no one suspects a cleaning van.' The young man with blond hair said with a confident flashy grin. 'That is the first thing we learn in class, Am I right?'

Asparus felt his eyes roll backward on her sockets just by remembering that statement. 'Every single criminal will spot this stupid van a mile away. It's the first thing you learn in the streets, dumb ass.' He thought to himself, his expressionless face twitching ever so slightly with an utter discomfort.

He took a long breath, closed his eyes and prepared himself for his role. Then a short friendly smile parted his lips apart and he pulled the side door open.

"Hey… Detective!" Said the greenhorn blond officer. "How it went down? Is your father okay?"

The already welcoming grin turned into a warm smile as Asparus got inside and took his spot on the right front seat. "Nothing too serious, he just fell off his chair and grazed his knees. You know how old people are, always making a big scene out of anything." He said with a playful tone, making his eager companion give in an understanding smile.

"Oh boy, you're telling me. My granny is always making a fuss out of everything." The man said, both arms getting thrown upwards and hitting the metallic ceiling. "Lucas, take your coat, it's windy outside. Lucas, make sure to get a proper meal. Lucas, don't you talk with strangers, they are dangerous." By the second time the young officer had said his own name, Asparus had already shut down his attention to him, just nodding and humming as the other man continued. "And I am like; granny?! Come on, I am twenty-one already… sheesh."

"Officer." Asparus called out to him with a stoic tone, the shift surprising his young partner. "Eleven o'clock, two suspects."

Getting in his 'serious mode' Lucas ditched his goofy grin away and shifted his attention to the two shadowy figures sneaking to the backside of the warehouse. He pulled a binocular from the side of his seat and spied on those people's movements. "I can't identify them; they are using black masks covering their entire head." He pulled his gadget down and glanced at the older officer. "What we do now?"

Staring at the scene with silent contemplation, Asparus stayed in his own little space for a few moments, tinkering with the unfolding events and how he could manipulate the small things. "When I had to leave, did anything happened then?" He asked the other officer without taking his eyes away from those other two at the distance.

"Oh, now that you mention it. A crew of four people came here just as you left. They were all men, dressed in a blue jumping suit and not even one was hiding their faces." Lucas pulled out his cellphone and began to show the pictures he had taken. "They brought all these sealed crates inside that one warehouse. It's so weird… look." He pointed to a series of pictures he had taken of those men bringing the cargo in. "They lazily doing this crap, without giving care for being quiet."

"Because they are just transport workers." Asparus pointed to the uniform all four are using. "Their company probably got hired to transport this crap without even knowing what it is." He clicked his tongue and opened the door to his side.

Lucas watched him out of the car with wide eyes. "The company just accept this shady stuff without questioning? Don't they have regulations against that?" Hastily jumping on of the car too, the younger detective went after his partner, following him closely.

"Money, Lucas." Asparus replied, turning to him and making a gesture with two fingers. "If they are given enough money, they will just turn a blind eye and deliver anything. Now, forget about the delivery guys and let focus on the perps in front of us." He nodded to the massive building still ways ahead of them, a broken metallic door hanging open from the backside of it.

"Right!" In his inexperienced brazenness, Lucas pulled his gun out of its holster and began to march forward with a determined expression on his face.

'For fuck's sake…' Asparus growled. "Hey, what are you doing?" He pulled the blond back, by grabbing his left arm.

"What? Aren't we going after those two?" Lucas said with a slight frown.

"Not wild-west style. Do you have a death wish or something?" Asparus spat at the younger man, looking at him with an unfamiliar scowl on his face, something that scared the poor blond a bit. "They can be armed and even worse, there can be more of them inside or coming into the warehouse. We need to split and cover both sides of the place. You get the front side, facing the avenue. I will go for the back one and then we can try to pincer them as they walk out."

"Sure… Okay." Lucas nodded feverishly. "I got the front and you got the back. Perfect! Just like in those movies."

Asparus wanted to punch this kid in the face, how he could have ended up with such a stupid partner is beyond him. But instead of blowing up years of work in his cover and his perfect image within the precinct, he took a long and painful breath, letting his steam fade away and just smiled to the guy, with a friendly nod.

"Just like the movies." He said with a joyful smirk, to which Lucas smiled and nodded. "Now, go around the end of the street, call for back up and wait until you hear my signal, okay?"

"Sure, thing boss." Lucas replied loudly and rushed his way back from where they come from, staring an entire roundabout around the large industrial block.

Asparus waited until the other man disappeared behind the corner to let a sigh escape his lips and a deep frown twists his façade. "Fucking dimwit." Pulling his tie loose, he adjusted his suit into a more 'fitting' position, at least to make him look a lot less like a police officer and more like what he truly is.

Putting a cold-stone 'mask' over his blank expressions, Asparus strolled in a hastened pace to the open door. Despite running this down inside his head a couple of times and in a dozen more minor ways if anything would go wrong, he has yet to be one hundred percent sure of how this will really go down. So, he released the gun on his holster from the magnetic cord securing it on its place, making it really easy for him to grab his weapon and defend himself.

'Damn… this is amazing.' A young voice sounded from inside, but one Asparus doesn't recognize. Making him quickly note to himself that both masked men are old teenagers, probably on their youngest adult years.

'Shut it will you?' The other boy snarled at his companion. 'Want people to find us here?'

This discovery made him quirk an eyebrow. It's hard enough to convince the bosses from letting a greenhorn into a smuggling operation like this; Now, two of them, and alone? Something doesn't feel quite right here, yet it is all shaping to be even better then what he expected.

Pulling the side of his coat over the showing back tip of his gun, making sure to hide it from curious eyes. He tapped the door with the side of his hand, and pushed the thing open ever so slowly, making enough noise to alert those two of his arrival.

"Who the fuck is there?" One of the boys shouted, he pulled one small pistol from behind him and pointed it at the incoming person. "Y-you! The hell you want here?" He said stuttering, his arms shaking wildly as he tries to steady his aim.

"Guren… chill." The other boy hissed at his friend, raising a hand in front of the armed gun in an attempt to dissuade the trembling youngster from doing a mistake.

Walking in properly inside the warehouse, Asparus saw a couple of wooden crates locked and secured to the side and one right open next to those two. The trembling boy is short and has a low cut hairstyle, his skin tanned and his body very lean. To his side is a taller boy with pale white skin, a crazy spiked hairstyle and a slightly muscular shape; both of them are dressed in loose black sweatpants with matching sweatshirts and a heavy hood hanging by their back.

"Goten… You know this guy?" Guren looked at his friend, his eyes wide as big saucers.

Spiky hair bobbed in the air as Goten nodded his head, his stance a bit calmer but his eyes are still trembling with raging nerves. "This guy was the one watching Trunk's back. He and some other one, they were always on the school gates when Trunks got in fights."

"T-Then he is from the rival family." Guren's stiffen arm shot right down, but the edge on his voice only got worse; his shivering too.

"Yeah… He is." Goten said, his eyes clenching as he stared as Asparus. Just looking at this man is enough to send chills down his spine and a justified chill if his reputation precedes him.

A small provocative grin appeared on Asparus' lips; he nodded to the boys and raised both hands in the air. "You can stop trembling like a newborn lamb, kid." He said looking at Guren. "I am not here to screw you two over."

Hearing that he would not kick the bucket tonight or that at least is not this man's intention to kill him at the moment, Guren stepped forward with renewed courage. "Yeah? What a dirty scum from a rival family wants in our turf?"

"The dirty scum came here to save your ass, stupid brat." Asparus spat angrily at the boisterous boy, fake out bravado quickly faded away in the wake of Asparus' heated voice. "Someone ratted you out. I don't know what you have here or what is your operation in this area, but the cops are on to you."

Goten and his friend traded alarmed glances with each other; Guren instantly began to cry and panic. The other boy seemed a bit more composed as per norm since the intrusion of the third man, yet he still looked disturbed and utterly distressed.

"H-How… How do you know about this?" Goten asked Asparus, throwing a suspicious glare at the man.

"Look, kid. I am doing you a favor here." Asparus shrugged, giving an unimpressed look at both boys. "Our families are rivals and more often than not we don't see eye to eye; Yet… the enemy of my enemy…" He let the sentence in the air, both boys looking at him perplexed.

"Is my friend." Goten said after, closing his eyes and taking things into consideration.

With the prolongation of their exchange, time has been ticking and ticking without mercy. From outside a frightening wave of siren thundered within, both boys glancing everywhere in a full panic mode.

"Fuck, fuck… Goten! What we do now?!" Guren brought both hands to his head, his legs wobbling wildly.

Goten was ready to shout at his friend, but he himself is scared out of his mind. He has just been allowed in the 'working ground' of his family and in his first duty, everything turned into a massive mess. Wide-scared eyes flashed onto the calm man staring at him, deep down he doesn't trust this guy, his guts are turning with just the thought of putting his life into his hands, yet…

"What we do?" He asked Asparus, not having the will to mask his desperation.

A welcoming smile graces Asparus' lips; he waved for the boys to come closer and turned on his heels to face the broken door. Afraid of their own steps, both of them followed him and stepped outside with legs shaking like a dry branch against the wind.

"You two know how to swim?" He asked seriously and both boys nodded reluctantly. "Good, then jump in the water and make your way to that beach on the other side." Raising one hand, he pointed to the vast ground of sand behind the parking lot he came from. "From there you can steal a car or do whatever you want to get away, the cops won't see you."

Guren didn't even question his motives or the safety of said plan, the terrified criminal just jumped head straight down onto the cold waters of the night sea, his body vanishing behind the slow pushing waves. Goten, on the other hand, hesitated for a moment, his eyes focused on the man staring at him with an impatient expression on to him.

"What about you?" The boy asked.

A dry laugh escaped from Asparus in reaction to that question, he waved one hand in dismissal, as the boy looked at him funny. "We can't all jump in the water and get away. You go after your friend while I keep the blue coats busy."

Goten was not entirely convinced by his words, yet the loud sounds of heavy steps are getting closer and closer; he can feel like at any moment an army of police officers will turn around the corner and shot at him. Without much choice given to him, he nodded to his supposed savior and jumped from the tip of the pier's floor. A low splash sounding off as he disappeared below the darkened waters.

Watching the waves in owl-like attention, Asparus made sure nobody was floating upwards, being from one of them turning up dead or just not swimming that well; but as nothing appeared on the surface, he pulled out his gun and began to fire in a calculated diversion. Two bullets to the wall at the left side of the broken door and three others fired at the air without a target in mind.

From the wake of his tumultuous decoy, a group of five officers dashed from one of the corners at the turn of the warehouse, Lucas leading them with a disturbed look in his eyes.

"Detective Asparus!" Lucas cried out loudly. "What happened? We heard shots being fired; are you okay? Where are they?" The blond man hastily rushed to his new partner's side, touching him all over the place looking for any wounds.

"Calm down, Lucas." Asparus gave him a light push, getting the man away from him. "I am fine… as fine as I can be." The dark-haired man lowered his head, a look of pure shame plaguing his face. "The suspects, they got the jump on me… After storming out of the building, they began to shoot and run; I couldn't get a clear shot… they escaped towards the other warehouses." He stepped forward, and tapped Lucas on his shoulder, again his expression nothing more than the image of regret. "Sorry, partner."

"Sorry about what? I am the one who should apologize; you took the dangerous path and I did nothing… I probably would be dead if I was here in your place." Lucas looked down himself, the glint of shame appearing on his eyes as well.

To the blond's surprise, the taller man pulled him closer and gave him a soft bump in his chest. "Don't sell yourself short, you're hasty but you are a good officer."

That little comment made Lucas' night, the appreciative grin that appeared on his lips was almost rivaling the curve of the new moon, lighting up the dark sky.

"Detectives." A third officer called out for them, the man walking out from the building with a brand new gun resting on his hands. "We found this in the open stash and there is a whole lot more in there. Care to take a look at the sealed ones as well."

Staring at that piece of metal, Lucas's face got a strange happy glow onto it. "They forgot the goods." He said with a loud chuckle. "I guess the night was not a complete fail. What you say, partner?" His eyes traveled back to a stoic-looking Asparus.

"A small win, detective." He said calmly, to which his partner pouted. "But one win to the good guys." Now he said with a big smile, to which the blonde-haired person beamed happily and quickly skipped his way into the warehouse. 'What a good night…' Behind his impassive look and calm eyes, Asparus is smirking wildly to himself, so much planning and thinking. Yet a pair of brats made his work ten times easier… 'What a fucking perfect night.'

* * *

Attention was never a need that Cabba had in his life, he is more than happy to get a dark corner to himself and think in blissful silence. But attention is what he gets the most whenever he comes to this place, _Charme Doux_; the most prestigious hostess club in the entire city and one of the establishments owned by his family. The girls who work here always go out of their way to please their 'employers' when they come here, but different from his 'brothers' Cabba rarely graces the place with his presence, making him one of the two most coveted young men by the beauties around here.

Sitting on the luxurious pink padded couch at the east side of the big saloon, Cabba is trying to ignore the gossiping voices of the girls looking at him from afar, but his throbbing headache making very difficult for him to focus on anything properly. As for the girls, all of them are dying to get closer and talk with him but way too scared of his dead-serious look and intimidating pose; which only adds to his charm for them.

Already used to this kind of treatment, the young black-haired man remained calm and collected, his eyes closed as he mulled over a single thought process that is consuming his mind; the finishing parts of his current job.

"My, my… If it isn't my favorite tough guy." A sweet melodious feminine voice sounded from his right, making him open his eyes to look at the self-invited woman.

Of course, the only one with enough courage to get on and disturb his quietness is none other than the manager of this club and the most demanded hostess among all the girls. Cabba glanced to the provocatively dressed woman, her long golden braids falling over her large breasts and accentuating her cleavage. As she sat down, leaning closer to him the entrancing scent of her perfume invaded his senses.

"Am I, now?" Cabba said with a short grin. "How sweet of you, Patricia. But I imagine that Asparus will be very disappointed when he hears about this."

The older blond woman giggled, both hands giving a light push on the man's right arm. As she laughed with his jest, her hips slowly moved backward putting her in a more suitable distance from him. "You both are my favorites and not only mine." She pointed to a group of three girls watching them from behind one of the giant pillars spread around the massive room. "Every girl here would kill to get any of you two on a magic night." Seeing that she moved forward again, the thin delicate fingers of her right hands caressing Cabba's thigh in a seductive manner. "A shame that neither of you ever accepts the offer."

Sweetened touches and tempting caress never had much of a sway over Cabba's instincts, and is not like he has no interest in woman or the warm touch of their bodies; But ever since his childhood he has been raised and trained to be calculative and cold towards his surroundings, it makes him better at his job. Yet, for some reason beyond his mind, he felt a shiver as Patricia grazed his skin over the layer of cloth of his pants. A little itch started to grow inside of his chest, making his eyes drift to a less than polite view of her voluptuous breasts.

"You know, Patricia…" Cabba said, his voice wrapped in a velvet tone. "Maybe I will accept your offer tonight." He said calmly, taking his gaze down to his hands sitting on his lap. "If something I really need to do finally happens."

A look of surprise and wanton flashing on her features as the older woman basically laid on top of his right arm as she leaned very closer to him. "Really?!" She said ecstatically. "What needs to happen for me to be able to finally drop you on my bed?"

A dark smirk parted his lips, one dark glint taking over the glow of his eyes as his hands clenched in the hold of each other. "I need to kill a man." He said with a grim tone.

Stunned in place, Patricia stared at the young man with an agape mouth. She studied his face and then after one full minute of blankness, she burst out laughing and poking at his side. "Oh, Cabba… You're so funny. Kill a man, hahah!" She continued to laugh, enjoying his 'joke' as the funniest thing she has heard the whole night.

Concealed from their ears by the loud sound of the woman's voice, firmly paced steps approached the booth from the entrance, a tall black-suited young man walking over to those two.

"Is my brother that funny?" Asparus commented with a sly grin, his voice startling the woman and making her jump as she looked behind her.

"Asparus!" Patricia jumped back on her feet, her high heels making bumpy noises as she latched her arms around the man's neck and gave him a warm kiss on his left cheek. "Listen to this; I finally got to snatch Cabba away. He is willing to taste a bit of paradise with me tonight."

"Is he, now?" The taller young man gave his friend a funny look, a silly grin creeping at the corner of his lips. "Congratulations are in order then. You've spent more than a year trying to get into his pants. Welp; Congratulations on yours, soon to happen, sex, Patricia."

"Thanks." She beamed happily, pulling herself away from the forced hug and smiling brightly at him. "Hey, since one of the two unclimbable mountains has given in to worldly pleasures, why don't you join in and we have an even bigger fun time?"

Both boys grimaced at the suggestion, with Cabba hiding his face behind his arms and his 'brother' frowning at the smiling woman. "Er… no." Asparus said with a slight denial shake of his head. "I would rather live my life without getting near his junk."

"Ahn… you're no fun." Pouting heavily, she hit his arm with a light slap. But her juvenile reaction quickly faded as she noticed one of her girls calling out to her on the back. With playtime over, she got back to her 'boss' persona and turned to leave. "I'll have to leave you, boys, for now, duty calls." She smiled to Asparus and turned to give an even bigger smile to Cabba. "If your thing works out like you want to; come back here at the end of my shift… I will be waiting for you, darling." With one last provocative wink thrown at the smaller man, the head of _Charme Doux _walked towards the center tables, her hips waving left and right with each step she took.

"Patricia, huh?" Asparus said with a small grin. Excusing himself into the booth, he sat at the other end of the couch, pulling out a single cigarette out of the pack. "Getting some stress relief?" He asked, lighting up the pale stick in his lips.

Feeling somewhat discomfort from being 'found out' Cabba just nodded, a serious expression turning his face cold yet again.

"Hey man, I am all for it. God knows how much you need some of that." Puffing out some smoke, Asparus looked at his brother and patted him at his shoulder. "She will take good care of you."

"You're all for it, but never do it yourself." Cabba replied, a faint accusatory meaning on his words. "If any of us 'needs' this, that one is you."

"Contrary to your belief, I don't live in celibacy." Asparus eyed his brother with a slightly annoyed glance. "I just don't touch the girls I know or work with… too much hassle will plague my life for just one night of sex." He inhaled deeply, taking a big load of smoke inside his lungs and them breathing it all out.

If someone knows how much that is a made-up lie, that person is Cabba. He knows that Asparus avoids getting close to anyone in a romantic way ever since that one girl; the woman who left him so broken that the only thing that made him feel alive was doing his work for the family.

From the two of them, his brother is clearly the more 'passionate' one, the person that was more willing to give himself to another person; and because of that, his heart aches a lot from seeing what such a compassionate person has become, a pool of nothing but skepticism and emotionless ruthlessness.

After their minor quarrel, a bothersome silence has taken over their small booth. Asparus too focused on his smoking habits and Cabba just afraid of bringing up something that will hurt his friend even more. But their unsettling mood didn't last for long enough as two pairs of steps sounded over to where they are sitting.

"Good evening, brothers." A tall raven-haired man, wearing a slouch grey suit, called out to them, by his side an even taller man with tidier clothing and a long ponytail cascading from the back of his head. "Such a rare sight to see you two here, especially you Asparus."

As the intruding guy began to address Asparus, his friend got a stiffened look on his eyes. He tugged at his friend's arm and tried to pull him back. "Come on, Turles. We have stuff to do."

The man named Turles pushed his friend back, the faint redness on his face showing that any drinks he has taken before are now getting the best out of him. "Shut up for a moment, Amond. Can't you see that I am talking to my brothers." Having yelled at his companion, the tipsy guy turned and look at Asparus again. "You know, it is weird not seeing you here as much. Aren't you the guy who loves a whore? This place is filled with them."

Cabba instantly got up, a dangerous look popping on his face as his fist trembling at his side. "Turles, maybe you should bother someone else." He hissed at his other 'brother'.

"Or what?" Turles' breathed the words, the stinking stench of beer hitting Cabba on his nose. "Don't get your pants off because of this, jeez. What's the problem of calling a whore, a whore?" He said with genuine confusion in his face, his gaze going downward at Asparus again. "That girlfriend of yours was a whore, no? She didn't take any money but was bouncing upon every male who would slap her juicy ass."

Amond had to get in front of his leader as Cabba moved forward to pummel the drunkard's face inside his skull. Not caring if he had to trample over Armond to get to Turles, Cabba pressed forward with a fist at the ready.

"CABBA!" Asparus' furious voice stormed over the booth, startling all three men at the same time. "Sit down…" He asked in a very commanding tone, to which his brother hesitated but complied.

Scared out of his mind, Amond dragged his ranking superior back, getting him to a safe distance to where Cabba could not reach him easily. "Dammit, Turles. Why the hell you have to mess with _Principiale_?" The man shouted in panic.

Amond has a very good reason to be so scared, as a member Braccio of the family, he knows his place, but his friend has seemed to have forgotten.

'The family' is divided in ranks, not by importance, as they are all equal as brothers; but divided by responsibilities. The first rank and considered the 'lowest' one, is the _Braccio_, the rank where the ground members, those working up towards a more meaningful space within the group, are placed in.

Then, the second group, the _Passionale. Passionale _are the bones and pillar of everything, they are the working force on the streets, collecting money and making sure that no one disrespects their authority. From here, the 'path' spreads in two ways, one being the _Intonare_, veteran members who serve as a council to their Father and lastly but not less, the _Principiale._

A more exclusive and often feared role by the rest of the members, _Principiale _are trained assassins with the sole purpose of their lives being to exist as the Father's ruthless dagger. Any difficult target, being by its danger or by how 'inaccessible' they feel, are designated to the _Principiale_. To this day, not a single mark has escaped their deadly retribution.

"Fuck Amond, why are you so scared. They can't touch me." Turles pushed Amond away again, giving dirty glares at Cabba. "No killing inside the family, yeah? Not even a _Principiale _can kill members without Father's consent."

"That's not the problem, man…" Amond said in a rushed whisper. "Remember that fucked up thing with Mr. Yohanz?"

With all his drunken bravery, Turles frozen in place at just the mention of that 'incident'. The death of Mr. Fellip Yohanz.

* * *

Once a great businessman, Mr. Yohanz witness his great legacy, a giant company with weight over the entire country, dwindle and wither. He tried everything to get back at the top, but nothing helped his case. That is until he looked for help in a more alternative form; the old chairman struck a deal with Don Sadala. A giant move on his part, risk yes, but very lucrative.

Where he was starting to fail before, his company began to thrive, reaching an even bigger stature than before. He didn't question the methods, nor who was getting harmed in his way to glory; the greedy old man only cared for his own growth and power. However, one day, Mr. Yohanz felt too big and powerful to continue upholding his end of the deal, and without notice, he completely pulled off from his new forged alliance.

As every person blinded by greed and power, Mr. Yohanz failed to see what would go wrong if he neglected his obligations. His 'kingdom' of wealth began to grow even more, as he now held the entire money to himself, from his ivory tower he watched as the 'lower world' got farther and farther below him. One week later, after his unwise decision, Mr. Yohans was found at his backyard, body resting on his fancy white chair, facing his pretty garden, but the spark of life had been robbed from his eyes. There, rested greedy Mr. Fellip Yohanz holding a white rose within his hands…

For those in the normal ways of life, his heart had just failed as the old man enjoyed his view with a pretty flower in his clutches. But, for those entangled with the ways of the underworld, they knew the meaning of that flower. Mr. Yohanz was killed, and in his hands, he held the mark of the _Principiale._

* * *

"W-whatever man, this is not even funny anymore." Turles said with a crooked grin, but his eye still trembling in a haunting fear.

To him and to everyone else outside the event, the death of an old man is not an unusual thing, to be fear Turles couldn't give two shits about that bastard's wellbeing. But what terrifies him is the fact that he doesn't know how it happened, no one does; the only thing he knows is that Mr. Yohanz died and a_ Principiale_ was involved, but that's it. No bullet holes, no bruises, no nothing; just dead.

"Amond! Let's find a pretty whore to drink with." Dropping his interesting in taunting Asparus altogether, Turles turned his back to them and walked wobbly and drunk towards the busier area of the club.

Left behind with a ginormous lump in his throat, Amond looked towards those two with an ashamed feeling painted in his face. "Sorry for this, brothers… He doesn't know how to handle booze. Turles is always doing stupid crap when he is drunk."

"Then stop the retard from drinking." Cabba snarled angrily.

However, to his side, Asparus just waved one hand, a 'generous' smile appearing on his lips as his attention shifted to the burly, shivering, man. "Don't sweat over it. Just make sure that stupid _Passionale _doesn't get himself killed over a glass of wine."

Looking at that white clean smile, not a slight hint of ill intention on it; chilled Amond to his core. Cabba's angry scowl was scary enough, but seeing that much apathy on Asparus' face was like facing a predatory animal having no concerns for his prey's irritable squeals. Making his damn best to no wet his pants in front of his superiors, Amond just bowed deeply, respectfully, and darted after his drunkard friend.

"Asparus… don't." Cabba said in the rush of his breathing, his eyes fixated on the twitching fingers of his friend's right hand. "Family is family, it doesn't matter how shitty some of us are."

"Jesus Cabba cut that crap. You guys need to stop treating me as if I am some sort of psychopath." He leaned back against the soft cushion of their seat, smoke venting out from his mouth "Seriously man, I won't kill a guy just because he is an inebriated jerk; I got more self-control than that."

When put like that, Cabba felt slight remorse eating up inside his chest; he knows better than to doubt his friend, even more so when that person is as level-minded as Asparus is. "Sorry…" Cabba said quietly looking to the side.

"Forget about it, no point in ruining my perfect night with something as dumb as this." Pressing his lips into a straight grin, Asparus left the cigarette on his mouth and pushed his head backward.

"That's odd. When did you ever felt so happy after being forced to stay on watch with someone else?" Cabba asked, his frown changing to a curious light-hearted smile.

"When I arrested twenty crates full of juicy illegal weapons." A wicked smirk spread all over Asparus' face. "I bet the boys at the Son family are losing their minds right about now."

"TWENTY?!" In the shock of his surprise, the smaller boy failed to hold his voice in, earning a playful hiss from his friend. "Holy shit, we were talking about four or five. How the hell did you find twenty of them?"

"Well, little brother. As it turns out, our rivals are apparently running out of safe houses to stock their shit. They probably were using that place to keep the entire months' worth of smuggling, and something tells me that they were just waiting for this last batch to make a big move." A light chuckle found its way out from Asparus' lips; he leaned forward and squished his smoke into the ashtray sitting at the small table in front of them. "My expectation was to score a small hit against them for the shit they pulled up against us; but as it turns out, I just fucked their entire operation in the span of a single night."

"Call me impressed." Cabba said with genuine awe and his 'brother' did a joking bow towards him. "Father will be thrilled with this, have you reported back yet?"

"Nope, not yet. I rushed out of the PD as soon as I got word from the garden." Venting his playfulness away, Asparus adjusted himself properly on his seat, staring at Cabba with a strictly professional look. "Ready for the job?"

Looking down toward his chest and even patting the left side of his chest, Cabba nodded and hummed. "Tonight is the expiration date. No more running around for mister rat." Making sure no one else was watching them, the young _Principiale_ pulled out his gun, a clicking sound echoing from the chamber as he pulled the backside and let it slide forward again. "_Possa trovare la pace nella morte_."

"_I morti riposeranno._" Asparus said the second part of their saying, eyes closed and a solemn expression reigning over his face. "You know where the mark is?" He asked.

"Yes. I came here to kill some time. Even if Raditz tells me otherwise, I'm pretty sure that this pig will be on high alert, despite his festive mood." Cabba put his gun away, making sure to hide it perfectly under his suit. "Give him a little time to enjoy the night and get tipsy enough to not recognize my face, right then I will get him."

"Well, have fun. I still need to-" A vibrating noise sounded from Asparus' pockets, he quirked a brow up as he got his cellphone on his hands. As he opened the thing from its folded form, his eyes shot wide open and his face went cold. "Shit!" He grimaced.

"Father?" Cabba asked a little worried; it's rare to see his friend so overworked over something on his phone.

"Worse… way worse." Asparus pushed his arm toward Cabba and showed him the lighted up screen. A name appeared in big bold letters right in the middle, _Primo Guardia_. After putting his phone back in his pocket, the startled young man jumped up to his feet and readily turned to leave. "I need to get back at HQ… After you're done with your crap, come back here. I want to make sure you will not bail out on Patricia, okay?" Giving out one last smirk to his friend, Asparus ran out as fast as he could, it would be no good to keep the second-in-command waiting for him.

"See you later, then. Brother." Cabba waved his brother away and straightened himself in his place. Pulling the sleeve of his left arm up, looking at his ticking clock, eyes watching as the bigger pointer reached the twelve mark. Once more, the tingling throb of an undying headache echoing inside his head. "Time's up, Mr. Marcus Lound."

* * *

Strawberry's Delight, a very famous, or infamous, bar at the heart of the purple district. A place where every regular of the nightlife comes to, be to get a drink and relax from their 'agitated' evening or to get the agitation started. Either way, the sparkling gem of this side of town is always buzzing with business and people, a place of gathering and fun. But also a place where the worst part of town gets together, from thieves to worse, they all join together in here to 'work' on their trade.

Yet, the favorite building of the resident frequenters of the district feels strangely empty this night. The first floor, which is spacious and full of spread out set of tables and chairs, has few to very little people present; the second floor is a sad barren scene, not even the waiters are going in there, a strange occurrence seeing how much that area is disputed by every customer for its comfortable couches and padded chairs.

Entering the red-painted hall of Strawberry's Delight, one can quickly understand why people are avoiding this bar tonight; heated voices, sounds of glass breaking against the floor and obnoxious loud laughter echoing all the way through the entire building.

A group of rude youngster is partying in their 'corner' of the large floor, but the rustling of their actions extending everywhere. Even in their small band of six people, they are 'using' three tables and messing around with at least eight other chairs despite most of them being too worked up to stay still even less sit down.

Each clerk and staff member of the bar are keeping their distance to the group; the girls not even leaving the backroom scared of harassment from those punks and the male workers just staring from afar while those kids are messing and even damaging their workplace. The only person with guts or the steel professionalism to attend to these 'clients', patiently putting up with their shenanigans is the owner of the bar. By this point, the grey-haired barista has served at least four bottles of vodka and couple bundles of beers; yet the wild running party showing no sign of stopping soon.

"Okay, okay. Let's toast this time for old Marcus here." One of the young adults, a boy with a black hair stylized in a peculiar way, with its left side completely bald while the right one is a mane full of hair, raised his bottle of booze in the air, his friends looking at him with drunk smiles. "A toast, to the slimiest bastard, who is a badass that takes no shit from anyone." The boy raised the bottle even more and as his friend yelled 'Cheers' he toppled the tip of the thing over his face and opened his mouth, making another huge mess as most of the liquid fell on the side of his face and leaked to the ground.

"Hahaha, aim that shit into your mouth." One of the girls of the group said in the midst a fit of laughter.

The other male youngster, a red-haired one with a ponytail, got up in the firm table and raised his cup towards the middle-aged man sitting with them. "Freaking Marcus. Takes a big fat dump on the mafia's backyard and look at him." The boy pointed at the fat man, his lips parting into a fiery smirk. "The legend doesn't even care."

Standing with wobbly legs, this Marcus got up, leaning one of his arms against the table to keep his balance. He grabbed one of the beers in front of him and began to boast proudly. "Mafia my ass, kid. If you are scared of some rats that have to band together to be scary… bah, then you're a dumb ass." He chugged down the entire can in his hand, letting out a loud burp as he squashed the thing against the table. "Listen to me, boys and girls. If you want anything, just take it! Let the dogs bark, they c-can't dwo anyfing…" His ability to speak getting noticeably worse as his face gets redder by the drowning alcohol in his system.

Another girl, one of pale skin, medium height and a very peculiar spiky black hair jumped to her feet; her face a pure image of bliss. "Fuck yeah! We are the new top dogs now." She yanked the bottle away from the raven-haired boy and turned the tip against her open mouth, practically inhaling the vodka without care.

"Look at Caulifla; she is more of a man than Jonny is." The fifth member of the group shouted out, a boy with girlish features and a small frame. With the railing cry of this one, two others jumped in and began to shout.

"Eagle~ Eagle~ Eagle~"

While the girl continued to drink in a frenzy, her friends began to cheer more and more, banging closed fists against the table, pushing her to swallow everything in one go. If they were noisy before, they are ten times worse now.

As the youngsters and the fat old man, continued to go at their party, the grizzly barista watched them with a frown in his face. He was neutral and impassive towards their mess as he is used to stupid brats coming inside his bar, but as they started to talk with total disrespect of a certain organization who rules everything around here, the experienced nightlife worker shook his head in total repudiation.

Steeling his breathing and moving ever so slowly to not gather attention to himself, the old man behind the corner took a cup onto his hands and began to rub a clean towel inside of it; his eyes slowly, hesitatingly wandered off to a place on the other corner of the first floor. He didn't dare to totally focus his gaze on that direction, he only went as far as getting a glimpse of the person sitting there in a lonely table. A man with a tamed spiked black hair, dressed in a dark black suit and casually sipping on his glass of whiskey. Not even one unrefined movement coming out of that person, as the cup went up towards his lips and then down to the table again; cold-calculative eyes watching the annoying group of brats' party, not a single detail escaping this gaze.

Letting out a defeated sigh, or maybe a terrified one, the grey-haired barista placed the sparkling clean cup down on the counter and grabbed a bottle of his most expensive whiskey. He trailed off calmly and slowly, making damn sure to not get anyone's attention as he crossed the large hall, stopping only in front of the lone man.

"Would you like another serving, sir?" He asked, offering the bottle up and doing a slight bow.

The young suited man drifted his eyes away from that group and onto the man standing in front of him. He then glanced at the almost empty glass in front of him. "Just half a dose…" He said with a stoic tone, a scary focus on his posture. He waited as the barista poured enough liquid to make the round piece of ice float inside the cup and then raised his hand. "That's enough. Thank you, Joseph."

Having accomplished his mission without showing how scared he is, Joseph gave another bow and turned to go back to his spot. As his steps got further away from there, Cabba grabbed his half-empty glass on his right hand and brought his full attention back to the other group.

After learning of his target disposition for bold and stupid stunts, Cabba rushed as fast as he could into Strawberry's Delight. He knew that he would find the old pig here, enjoying stuffing his face with as much alcohol as he could get his hands on. However, what the young Principialedidn't expect was to run into a group of very distinct young people, with one of them sharing a striking similarity to the description Nappa gave him. To make matters even more clear, the idiots all began to shout the name 'Eagle' as the girl stuffed her face with vodka; the same name the owner of the pawnshop mentioned earlier today.

Cabba is a patient man, more patient than most of his brother but way less than his closest friend. In that, he found himself debating what he should do in these circumstances. As his mind began to trace countless plots and plans, his heated desire for a very specific old pig's blood kicked in. He has one job already, one that is his and his alone. Those brats can be dealt with later, and, they are 'family matters' now, is not like he could act without his Father's permission anyway.

So instead of pulling his gun and taking them all right here and right now. Cabba took a long sip from his cold drink and placed the glass back on the table. Opening the first button of his coat, the brought one hand in and pulled out a small-thin pen. Pulling the close napkin box sitting next to his cup, Cabba pulled one of them and began to fold and turn the paper until its texture got flat enough for him to scribe on it without constraint. After making sure that his pen would not slide horribly against the folded napkin, he began to stroke the pen against it in a meticulous method.

One turn of his pen, then one glance at the group. A deeper stroke in his drawing, another look on their faces. With scary focused attention, Cabba made an outline picture of every young person of that group, taking a bit of more time and care in the drawing of the purple dressed girl. As he finished the last touches on the details of her face, he put his pen back in his pocket and grabbed the five folded napkins in his hands. He studied them, by comparing the outlines to the people they belong to, seeing a sufficing piece of work by his part, he put them all inside the empty back pocket of his pants.

The sound of shattering glass erupted from the group of youngsters, all of them yelling in excitement as the girl named Caulifla smashed the empty bottle against the table, leaving a mess of broken glass.

"You're a pussy, Jonny!" She yelled loudly, pointing one finger at the startled boy; their friends laughing at his expense.

"Come on, babe." Jonny swoops over to Caulifla's side, reaching around her waist with one grabby hand pinching at the base of her belly. "Give Jonny a chance, and you will see how much of a man I truly am."

At first, in her altered state, Caulifla stared at the boy with stunned eyes, not really registering his bold move. Then she exploded in laughter, wiggling the grabby hand away from her and pushing Jonny with so much strength that he went down with his bums to the floor. "Hah, Yeah… Haha, right. Like you could ever handle me, little Jonny." She rubbed her face with both hands and growled loudly; the last 'shot' of vodka probably getting a little too much to her. "I need a real man! A badass, cold-hearted killer, who will rock my world." She glanced at her sides, looking past her friends and not really focusing on anything of importance. "Where are the men of this place, huh? There's not even one here that's worth my attention."

While the boys whinnied in annoyance by how not 'worthy' they are in their leaders' eyes, the other girl giggled and laughed; standing up and getting closer to 'Eagle' with a twisted smirk on her lips. "I was keeping this one for myself… But there is quite a catch sitting all alone over there." She cooed the words in a sweet melody.

Caulifla's face turned to her in the blink of an eye, her eyes wide and her lips quivering. "Where?!" She demanded with a different thirst swirling her insides. Her friend, giggling yet again, turned her attention to the left and pointed to a vacant spot at the other corner of the large room.

"Wait… but he was right there." She said with a disappointed tone. "I swear, one handsome, mysterious and totally cool guy was sitting right there by himself."

Another fit of laughter enveloped the group, this time the boys having the time of their life as their friend was staring at an empty seat, with a lone cup resting at its table.

"Damn Gina, have you drunk so much that you started to hallucinate dreamy boys?" One of them groaned this out in between laughs.

"Hey, Caulifla." Jonny who had jumped back on his feet began to circle around the spiky-haired girl yet again. "If you want a manly man to scratch your need, why not take on old Marcus here." The boy is clearly joking, but the old man straightened his upper body up, shining with a dumb smile on his face. "You can't find a better alpha male than the legend himself, right guys?"

Rallied up by Jonny's stupid play, the other two boys began to clap their hands and chant Marcus' name, the fat old creep getting a bit carried away in his ego, as his eyes glided over the curves of Caulifla's body.

Just as he was about to open his mouth and say something, Caulifla herself began to laugh and wave her right hand in front of her.

"Old Marcus is older than dirty; does his thing even gets up anymore?" She spat out without caring for the old pervert's feelings.

Marcus' pepper-red face got even redder as the kids, who moments ago were praising his awesomeness, now have begun to make fun of him with ruthless commentary; some of the boys even raising their little finger in a crooked way as to insinuate something. Not wanting his 'free food and drinks' pass to end because he lost his temper, the old man just laughed together with them, despite the bulging vein that has popped at the side of his forehead with his burning anger.

"You kids, play too much." Marcus said with a goofy grin. Wobbling his wide legs, he pushed himself up again and turned to the other side, rubbing his round belly. "I can't keep up with you all like this. Order some more booze, while I go outside to take a leak."

Without questioning his suggestion, the youngsters all shouted happily, demanding the staff to bring them more stuff to drink.

Leaving his drinking buddies behind him, old Marcus walked past the hallway leading to the bathrooms and pushed open the door for the back alley. As he stepped out of the building, his face twisted in a crazy furious scowl, his nose twitching as he fumed in anger.

"Fucking kids, making fun of me." He spat angrily. Walking over to the tall wall of the building beside the bar, he slid the zipper of his pants and flapped his flaccid member out in the wind. "I will show that bitch how hard I can get. Those kids are all morons; I'll let them pay for my shit and make them drink their faces off. Just you wait, girls. Old Marcus here will take good care of you two when you get knocked out cold, drunk." Grabbing his thing as he released his yellow stream against the brown bricks, a sick grin flashed on his lips. "Especially you, Caulifla. I will rape you real good for that comment of yours."

In his twisted delusions, Marcus had failed to notice that he was not alone. In fact, from the moment he stepped outside he was not alone anymore. Another man was waiting for him outside, back resting against the bar's cold wall; hawk-like eyes not leaving his form ever since he closed the door.

"Marcus." Cabba called out to the old bastard, his tone ice-cold and with a sharp edge to it.

With a foggy mind and dizzy eyes, Marcus turned his head to the side, a clearly annoyed look on his face. That is until his gaze landed on the slim cylinder pointed right at his face; he didn't recognize the person standing behind him, but he clearly recognized the shape of a silenced pistol.

"FUC-" The word never left his mouth fully. A small flash exploded from the metallic barrel, the bullet traveling faster than sound, entering the old's man face in a small puncture between his eyes and exploding out from the back of his head in a messy hole. His heavy body tackled backward, his back crashing against trashcans laying on the ground.

Laying on the dirty ground with a face frozen with pure terror, and wide-eyes dulled lifelessly staring at the cloudy sky… Marcus Lound is now dead.

Letting the smoke die out from the tip of his gun, Cabba put it back on his waist. One gloved hand pulling the top of his coat open and other reaching in to take out a single fresh and beautiful white rose. Kneeling next to his now crossed mark, the young _Principiale_ closed his eyes and put the flower on top of Marcus' chest, moving one of the dead man's hands and pressing it against the green stalk of the flower.

"_Arrivederci, _Mr. Lound." Standing up and glancing down one more time, Cabba turned around and quietly stepped away, leaving with his job completed.

Minutes after any movements have occurred inside the alley, the heavy door at the side of the bar got smacked open again.

"Hey, old man. Have you lost your junk in the middle of your…" Jonny went pale, his eyes getting bigger, and his mouth dropping down as a terrifying screech escaped his throat. "MARCUS!? Oi, Old man, answer me." He dropped next to his deceased 'friend' fat body, the hand he used to get support on the ground getting soaked with the still-warm blood staining the floor. Now the shock overwhelmed the young criminal, he began to shout, scream and wail.

By the time his friends arrived outside, every single one of them startled by the exalted voice, they only found a mentally scarred Jonny kneeled beside Marcus' dead body.

* * *

Exhausted, frustrated and torn apart by his own thoughts, the young heir of the Sadala criminal empire finds himself drained and lost, sitting alone on the trimmed grassy carpet on the front yard of his giant house. Ever since he entered his last year in high school, Trunk has felt like his world did an unprecedented turn.

Before he would just live his days normally and lazily like any other kid at his age, getting into trouble because of his ego and being saved by his two bodyguards that would appear out of nowhere and scare the crap out of anyone daring to hurt him. Now, his life is a constant pull gravitated into the 'family' business; forced to watch and learn every aspect of his father's trade.

He has never liked what he father does, is not like he feels a rightfulness distaste for the way of life his old man chose to himself; but Trunks has never felt the same 'desire' to get involved into things like that, to forcefully prove to everyone how powerful and influential he is. This softness of his always earned the young boy some heated words from his father and some mocking comments by the men sworn to serve him.

Yet, in this sea of unfair expectations burdening over his shoulders; Trunks always finds comfort and understanding from his bodyguards or as he calls them, his friends. Cabba, the always reserved and quiet man always helped him with a 'normal' perspective on his life, assuring him that nothing was wrong with him for having doubts about this life, in fact, Cabba always says that people entering this kind of thing without any reservations are the worse type of people.

Now as much as Trunks likes Cabba and appreciates his friendship, the young boy absolutely adores the other person responsible for keeping him safe. Asparus is harsh and serious when needed, but he is always funny and caring; whatever complaint Trunks had to say, Asparus would gladly hear and often help ease his discomfort; however, when such complaint was unfounded and pure tantrum of a spoiled kid, his bodyguard would scold him with the harsh truth.

Compared to the usual 'always-yes' from his mother and the dissatisfied grunts of his father, getting some real education of what is normal behavior and what is just rich kid's spoiled desires was a real saver for his growing phase and the shaping of his character.

Sadly for Trunks, after his new phase of life began and he was forced to diverge his attention from his school grades to the teachings of his uncle, the teenager was left without the constant presence of his two friends, as his father deemed their friendship 'too distracting' and unnecessary for his task.

After three months away from any real interaction with Cabba and Asparus, Trunks now finds himself in his state of utter exhaustion and feeling completely alone.

"Hey, kid. Did you lost something on the ground?" Asparus cool voiced sounded away as he passed by the inner gates of the second line of walls on the property's grounds.

Trunks, who was pinching grass out of the ground, instantly raised his head, his eyes widening and lips parting in an amazing smile as he saw his friend walking closer to him. "Asparus!" He motioned to stand up but stopped when his friend waved at him.

Casually sitting down with his pristine dark suit, not caring that his pants are touching the foliage, Asparus settled beside the younger boy, taking one hand to Trunks' head and messing with his hair. "What's up with the gloomy face? Something's wrong?"

After the initial shock of seeing Asparus' again, Trunks calmed down again, now a pout taking over his facial expression. "My life is an insufferable hell, that what's wrong." The boy spat out, turning his face away to enhance his upset act.

"Hm… insufferable hell, huh?" Asparus stared at the lavender-haired boy, this little banter between them was always entertaining, but after being away from the kid for so long; Asparus cannot help but feel a little light pull of nostalgia racing inside his chest. "If there's anything I can do to help, just say the word. Who I need to beat up?" He said in a playful tone but a hint of sincerity in the words.

"My uncle." Trunks blurred out, his eyes traveling back to his friend with a curious expectation.

As the teenager predicted, Asparus grimaced and raised both hands. "Erh… can't do that, kid. Even if I wanted to, your uncle would probably murder my ass before I got close to him." He leaned in closer, hiding his mouth with the back of his hand. "You know that the _Primo Guardia_ was the sole _Principiale_ before, right? The guy is a legend."

"Legendary pain in my butt." Trunks spat, frowning deeply as he throws both arms in the air.

Asparus stared at the boy with mouth agape, stunned by the courage of the kid and the stupidity of insulting someone like this uncle. A single snort escaped Trunks', both hands flying to his mouth to hold his laughter in, but a quick glance at Asparus' burning-red face, himself trying to hold in, was enough to break the boy and make him burst out laughing.

A duet of laughter and chuckles erupted on the front yard; Trunks falling with his back against the grass and Asparus bending forward with a trembling belly.

"Ho… you're laughing, are you?" Trunks said teasingly. "Imagine what the murk face would say if he knew about this."

"_Principiale_."

Asparus has frozen up in his place like a cup of water within a ravaging snowstorm. He was not expecting to hear a third voice and he was definitely not expecting to find a stoic looking man staring down at them from the front door of the mansion.

"_Primo Guardia!" _Asparus jumped to his feet, his upper body bent forward, as fast and firmly as he could, his head almost torpedoing down onto the grass with the suddenness of his movements. "It had no intention of mocking you, sir. And if I caused any discomfort, I beg for forgiveness."

Tarble Sadala, Don Vegeta Sadala's younger brother and the second in command over their family. He, who once held the title of _Principiale_ in solitude during his father years as Don, raised up to _Primo Guardia_ after his brother 'retired' from the position and inherited the leadership. Tarbles abilities as _Principiale_ was so immense and fundamental to the entire organization, that when he stepped away from such responsibilities, the gap left behind was too big. Feeling impossible to fill in that space with just one person, Vegeta trained and appointed two of his most promising youngsters to that rank; those two being Cabba and Asparus.

"Raise your head, Asparus." Tarble said in his monotone voice, as always he is the best in hiding his feelings and thoughts, not even his brother can read him most of the time. "You're needed on the main office; the Don is waiting for you." Having fulfilled his task of fetching the 'lost' young man, Tarble just turned away and disappeared inside the giant house.

Still feeling his heart stuck at his throat, Asparus looked at Trunks with a hilarious scared face. "Think he is mad?"

Trunks shrugged and smiled. "Dunno. I never know what is inside his head. But if he was angry he would have smacked you in the back of the head, as the does with me whenever I fail his tests."

"You're lucky that you are his beloved nephew. A slap in the head was like candy compared to what he did to me and Cabba when he trained us." Asparus' entire body shivered, just the flashing memories are enough to make him wince. "I better get going, would hate to give him any reason for any 'slapping'."

"Wait, Asparus!" Trunks called out to him, one hand reaching to the end of the black coat. "Can you visit me again… soon? Maybe we could go to the park and have a better talk; you could even give me one of those cigarettes you're always smoking."

"Ha… Hahah." Patting the kid on his head again, Asparus smiled, messing even more with Trunks' hair, something the boy isn't very fond of. "You're too young to get into this stuff. Maybe later, kid. Once you're 'old' enough to call me brother; then we can have a smoke together."

"Not fair!" Trunks yelled out, pushing Asparus' hand away from his head. "I wanted to… This isn't fair…"

"The world isn't fair, kid." Asparus gave him a sorry smile, feeling a bit bad for disappointing his younger friend. "Trunks, focus your everything in this mess you've been pulled into. Then before you know it, we will be drinking together as brothers… See you later, friend. Love ya."

Leaving the lavender-haired boy with a teary glow in his eyes, Asparus stepped inside the mansion. As much as breaks his heart to let Trunks down, he needed to do this. The boy will need to be strong, stronger than everyone is. Because when the time comes, he will be the head of this family.

* * *

A little scare from Tarbles was enough to set Asparus straight on his task, and that situation left quite the impression on him, as the young man made his way to the main office without wasting even a single step in an unnecessary direction. Right now, he finds himself in front of the big double doors, staring at the wooden surface with a certain apprehension inside of him as he hears exalted voices echoing from inside.

Barging in is out of the question for more than a thousand reasons, despite the fact he was called here by the big man himself, he would never dare to enter that room without a clear command from his 'Father'. But delaying, even more, could also prove disastrous to him, leaving Asparus in a tight spot. He sighed lowly and closed his eyes, one hand moving up and gently knocking on the door.

The voices stopped, at least the heated tone of them faded almost instantly. Heavy steps began to approach, at each new sound they sounded closer and closer; until the door swung open and defeated looking Nappa received Asparus.

"It's Asparus." Nappa said, giving a short glance behind him.

"Let him in." Vegeta responded calmly. "You can also leave, we are done here."

The dismissal affected the bald man greatly as his face contorted in a disappointed frown; with a soft click of his tongue, he pushed the other part of the door all the way to the wall, making enough space for him to pass beside Asparus and limp away with his shoulders hanging low. Watching his brother go, he felt sorry for the poor bastard that not only were shot today but also was chewed over it by their boss.

A low growl sounded in from within the luxurious and spacious room, Vegeta cleared out his throat in a manner that Asparus would hear and get the meaning behind it. To which the youngster hastily reacted by getting inside the room and closing both doors behind him.

"Father…" Asparus continued to walk until he stood in the middle of the room, close enough to see his boss properly but with enough distance to show his respect. "You called out to me?"

"That I did, son." Vegeta's tone was as always serious and collect, hiding any hints of the emotions he is feeling right now. "A friend of ours got in touch with me earlier this night. One big surprise, if you ask me, considering that this friend had neglected our friendship some time ago." A slight glint of amusement flashing in Vegeta's grin. "It was about your job." He said, pointing one finger at Asparus, who jolted his head up.

"You already knew about the results of the operation, Father?" Asparus asked with a tilted brow, his surprise more than apparent by both his tone and gesture.

"Just that you succeed, not by what margin or what happened. Thus, the reason why I had you called back home." Sinking his back against the comfort support of his impressive chair, the patriarch took one of his expensive cigars out of the drawer, his eyes casually bouncing from Asparus and his smoke as he prepared it. "Report, if you will. Spare no detail."

A fast nod was Asparus immediate reply, he motioned to his chair at the left-wing of the seats and waited for his father to nod in consent for him to take his place and start relaying everything. As per usual procedure, Asparus skipped every small thing that was unnecessary for his Father, which mostly involved police proceedings. He just laid the picture of the operation as a whole briefly and explained the 'whys' and the 'hows' of his plan to attack that warehouse.

Getting into the 'amusing' part, he detailed how many crates were secured, what each of them contained and even the quality of every product being arrested. Realizing the full extent of damage this little 'game' has caused to his rival, Vegeta could not help but laugh, he laughed for good five minutes, in which Asparus silently waited for him to be done with his relishing of such marvelous news.

As he brought the cigar to his lips and lightened up the tip, Vegeta's face got even more menacing with a gloomy light that flashed after one deep inhale. "As hilarious as it is to imagine Kakarot's anguish over this, I can't help but notice something strange with you. Something else happened to cause such bother?"

"Goten was there at the scene." Asparus said, as Vegeta's brows twitched and his face lost that happy glint to it, the young man winced. "He and some other punk were the ones doing the check-in routine at the cargo today."

"And?" Vegeta asked, monotone curiosity flying out from his mouth.

"I managed to get rid of the guy, assigned as my partner, for a few minutes. Before anything truly troublesome could happen, I got to them and warned those boys to run." Again, as Vegeta's expression shifted from his words, so did Asparus nerves. Now his Father is looking amused again, to which Asparus felt like weights had been lifted from his back. "They jumped into the water and swam over to the beach at the side, away from the action."

A sonorous hum echoed from within the powerful man, his face getting a bright light over it again as his cigar sparkled from his lung's pull. "Damaging Kakarot's operation and taking his toys is enjoyable fun to be had. However, canning his kid would be one-step too far… You've done well. Family is what matters the most to people like us, hurting Goten would inevitably hurt everyone and everything."

Asparus thought the same thing at the time; family trumps all. If he had involved Goten into that mess, his family would stop at nothing to get back at them; then they would be forced to retaliate even worse, in the end, both families would be locked into a war that no one would gain from it. Well, no one but the rats that circle around them, waiting for any opportunity to strike and take all the control for themselves, as such is the life path they walk.

At the other entrance-end of the room, two sets of knocks sounded from behind the door; a rhythmic pace that only one person knows. Vegeta just darted his eyes to the entrance, but Asparus promptly shot up to his feet, knowing what would transpire.

"Enter." Vegeta commanded and Tarble stepped inside, the face of seriousness itself stamped on his expression.

"Don, our self-invited guess has arrived." Differently from everyone else in the organization, Tarble doesn't call his brother 'Father'. That is not for the fact that they are blood-related brothers, but the reason behind it stands from his own position. As _Primo Guardia_, Tarbles is not one of Don Sadala's sons; he is Don Sadala's will impersonated, his hands and his shadow. For that reason, he addresses his brother as an outsider would do, to set him apart from the others.

"Did he now?" A humorous chuckled came from Vegeta, the man straightening himself on his chair, resting his cigar on the jade adorned ashtray at his desk. "Send him in, this will prove to be most entertaining."

Tarble nodded and turned away.

Asparus quickly bowed and paid his farewells to his Father, it would not do for him to disturb a meeting with his presence. Or so he thought.

"Asparus, you stay." Vegeta commanded. "I want you to serve as a witness to Mr. Jonnathan's plight." His right hand raising up in the air, motioning for the younger man to get back at his seat and Asparus readily obeyed.

"D-Don Sadala, you have to help me." Came in the guest, screaming loudly as he impolitely bashed the doors open. A middle-aged man, with light-brown short straight hair with the length kept at his shoulders, a big full mustache above his lips and a pair of green eyes adorning the upper side of his face. "Y-You… need to help me, please."

"Without gracing our house with your presence for months, you come in and start demanding things?" Vegeta said with a sharp edge in his voice. "That's extremely rude behavior, ONE that I will not stand for inside my own house."

The man is clearly distressed and perturbed looking at his discrepant suit of dark-blue upper garments and grey pants. But at the dangerous growl coming from the patriarch, he felt an immense sense of fear flooding his head and his only reaction to it was to kneel down and bury his forehead at the rasp surface of the violet carpet.

"Don, p-please forgive m-my lack of m-manners." He said in desperation, the stuttering getting worse and his heartbeat going crazy. "T-the situation could n-not be any worse. I had closed a massive deal with some associates, but they are refusing to keep their end of the bargain. This could destroy my company."

"Jonnathan, hold your whining for more than two minutes or I will have you thrown out of my house." Vegeta warned him with a dissatisfied frown to which Jonnathan yelp lowly and nodded quietly, rubbing his face on the carpet yet again. Seeing a bit of cooperation coming from the agitated man, Vegeta smiled. "Before we go any further in your conversation, I would like to make two things very clear to you right now." He stood up as Jonnathan's face going up to look at him. "First, the man sitting on that chair behind you, he will be the witness of your plea. You may call him, _Principiale. _Present yourself for our friend." He commanded and his 'son' obeyed.

"A pleasure meeting you, Mr. Jonnathan." Asparus said with slight a bow. But Jonnathan was scared out of his mind after hearing the name _Principiale_, the older man could just nod and weakly wave his gaze away from the young man behind him.

"Second." Vegeta continued. "You have forgotten our friendship, Jonnathan. That's something I do not take lightly. Before asking anything out of me, make sure to mind your words very closely. Do you understand?"

"I-I… understand."

"Perfect. Now get yourself out of the ground, I rather have a conversation with your face than your curled back." Vegeta said in a much more smooth tone, getting himself back on his gallant chair, waiting for Jonnathan to continue.

"O-Of course, Don." Replying meekly, the man slowly got back on his feet, his forehead marked with the shape of the carpet design some stray threads stuck on his skin. "I would never plan to disrespect you in any way, but my situation is simply catastrophic."

"Hm… How so?" Vegeta asked.

"This deal I had made, it was… it is massive. A lot of work but a lot of money involved. The cargo was very dangerous to transport, but I've been on this business for decades now. As hard as something can be to disguise, nothing is impossible to transport." Jonnathan jumped on his spot when Asparus walked behind him, bringing the man a chair for him to sit. Still wary of the young man, he nodded and sat down. "You see, as long as we pay the right people, we could convey the most wanted person in the world and no one would bat an eye to our way."

"I'm very aware of that, as we conduct business in a similar manner." Vegeta's word came out with a bit of understanding and a tiny share of irony. "This tale of yours is shaping to be very upsetting."

"And that it is." Jonnathan leaned forward on his chair, gripping the arms of his seat as his expression emphasized his woes. "I put a lot of money on this thing, a lot! Now, someone over their side fucked up and got the goods grabbed the cops and they are blaming it on ME! They are refusing to pay me!" The man exploded, both arms going into the air in his frustration. "Don Sadala, the amount of resource I had to pull to get this job done is substation enough to ruin me, if I am left without nothing."

"I see… That is very concerning, my friend. There is nothing worse than unreliable business partners." This last comment was aimed specially to be a direct jab at Jonnathan's stance with their own past deals. However, the man is too distressed to have noticed. "As much as I feel for you, I don't see where I fit this mess of yours."

"P-Please, sir! You have to help me, I really need this money; at least a portion of it." Practically throwing his upper body forward and his forehead against the tip of Vegeta's desk, Jonnathan bowed again. "I know this is too much, I know it. That is why I will do anything! After I settle this nightmare down, I will make good on my part. Anything you ask, Don. Anything and I shall do it."

"Those are some heavy words, Jonnathan." Vegeta looked at the man with a sinister interest. "Do you truly have to will to uphold such promise? Let's presume that I demand the trade routes you gathered from these new associates of yours, what would you say?"

"I'll do it! I will give you everything I know about them." Jonnathan shouted loudly, his arms shaking as he grabbed the desk.

'Not good…' Asparus frowned from his position; he looked at the exchange with a grim silhouette over his eyes.

A dark glare flashed at Vegeta's face, a visage so cold and murderous that even Asparus shivered at its sight. However, as Mr. Jonnathan is holding his head low with his gaze to the ground, he failed to catch a glimpse of this before an expression of pure delight appeared on the Don's face.

"Excellent, Jonnathan… Truly, excellent." Vegeta commended the man's disposition, to which he raised his head with hopeful eyes.

"T-Then? You will help me?" Lost in his hopeful thoughts, Jonnathan smiled with a newfound relief.

"To a friend, we go at great lengths. Sometimes, even beyond the realm of reasonable." At that Vegeta got up from his seat and signaled for his 'friend' to stand up as well. Thrusting his hand forward, he smiled and waited for the man to move in for a handshake. "We will work the details of our negotiations. I'm sure we can find terms that are good for both of us." Walking around his desk and standing beside Jonnathan, he tapped the man at his shoulder at pointed at the door. "Let's talk in a better place."

After that, Jonnathan is now smiles and grins. In a complete turn of mood, he has started to chuckle and even dropped the ever-alert form of his shoulders. "Ah… a tour around your lovely house? That would be most welcome." He said, for the first time, calmly.

"_Principiale_." Vegeta called out just as he was leaving. "You are dismissed for the night. You've done a good job." A rare praise coming from the boss.

One clicking sound echoed inside the room as Vegeta closed the door behind him as he escorted his guest to another part of his house, leaving Asparus to himself. The young man still sitting on his chair, focused his eyes on the transparent windows at the back of the room, watching the rustle of the trees moving with the wind.

He sighed, taking one hand to his face. It was then that he felt it, that familiar sensation that from time to time always plague his senses. The start of a prickling headache.

"Do people ever learn?" He asked himself. A question that always pops on his head when he witnesses an act of stupidity as brazen as the one he just saw.

* * *

Two hours, maybe three. Cabba can't even tell how much time has passed since he walked back here, to his pink corner on _Charme Doux's _first floor. His eyes fixated on the starry scenery on the painted ceiling, his body limp after the tension left his system. As if he was pulled out of his body, Cabba saw people moving at a very fast pace, going and coming, laughing and singing; He just existed in his corner as the club continued to buzz with people everywhere, but no one paying attention to the lone man.

Reaching with his hand, ever so slowly, Cabba pressed his fingers on his forehead and for the first time, he noticed the absence of something. His headache is gone, completely gone. Not even echoes remain from that hellish ringing that was ever so constant in his mind; even his limbs felt so light and free. After rubbing his entire face with both hands, he pushed his upper body forward, arching in his chest facing his thighs as his gaze went to the floor.

Looking down at his feet, the saw a small red stain at his otherwise pristine black shoe. For some reason, that stupid bloodstain deeply annoyed him, as if that was one last act of mockery that pig of a man had thrown at him. Clicking his tongue in annoyance, Cabba brought his back up yet again and began to search for anything that he can use to wipe that thing away.

"I'll get that for you." One voice reached in and pulled him out of his trance.

Still a bit groggy, Cabba just watched as Asparus crouched in front of him and cleaned his shoe with the handkerchief of his suit. His brother carefully wiped that mark away, leaving the same sparkly look that the footwear used to have.

"Looking a bit out of yourself." Asparus commented as he took a seat next to his friend. "How is your headache?" He asked, but the answer already clear for him.

Cabba just leaned against the comfortable support of the fancy couch, closing his eyes and smiling peacefully. "It's gone."

"Good riddance, then. I like to think that the world is a better place with one less rapist on it." Asparus sighed heavily and leaned back just as Cabba did, both 'brothers' resting from their exhaustion. "Patricia is looking at you." He said with a teasing chuckle, to which Cabba jabbed him on his side with an elbow. "Maybe you should tell her, that you iced the pig who tormented one of her girls. I bet she would compensate you very dearly."

"And for what? We are already going to have sex, no need to give her unnecessary details about my life." Cabba response was blunt, but not in a negative tone, he just spoke the first sentence floated in his head.

"At least you're not running away… Then I guess that my job here is done." Asparus grinned shortly and then winced quietly in slight pain.

"You okay there?" Cabba turned his head to the side, raising a brow as he saw Asparus bringing one hand to his forehead.

"Yeah… yeah… just some faint headache." Asparus replied, waving one hand in dismissal.

Cabba was not convinced but he is too tired to argue, so he just closed his eyes and returned to his quiet meditation. Both of them stood like that in peaceful quietness in the midst of loud music setting a certain 'mood' in the place and people laughing and chatting all about; but not of that bothered them, as this feels cozier than any quiet place would feel.

Yet, even if they could ignore every voice and sound storming around them, the faint vibration noises of a cellphone it is not something neither of them can ignore. Asparus pulled his phone out and flipped the thing open.

He sighed, a cynical smile appearing on his lips. "Yeah… I had a hunch."

"Something important?" Cabba asked.

"More or less…" Asparus raised his hand, showing the short message at the screen of his phone to his 'brother'. Jonnathan Langley is the only thing written in there; as short and vague as that may look, the message is very clear for both of them. "Looks like Mr. Jonnathan failed to appease Father."

"Another job to the list." Cabba said calmly. "_I morti riposeranno..." _

To which Asparus nodded with a cold small smile appearing on his lips. "_Possa trovare la pace nella morte..."_

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Please leave your comments and share with me what you thought of this one, any feedback is always much appreciated.


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